


Some Hypothetical Vengeance

by kate7h



Category: Vinland Saga (Manga)
Genre: (this time it’s Gudrid having a nightmare), F/M, Late Night Conversations, Literal Sleeping Together, Nightmares, Post-chapter 172, kinda angsty
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-27
Updated: 2020-05-27
Packaged: 2021-03-02 20:20:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,978
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24402700
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kate7h/pseuds/kate7h
Summary: He’d never seen her have a nightmare before, not in all the time they’d shared a bed. Gudrid gasped, whimpering in her sleep as she trembled. He felt frozen watching her, wondering what in the world could’ve caused her to experience such a thing.~~Thorfinn is alarmed when it’s Gudrid who is plagued with a nightmare.
Relationships: Gudrid/Thorfinn (Vinland Saga)
Comments: 8
Kudos: 36





	Some Hypothetical Vengeance

**Author's Note:**

> I’ve been thinking a lot about what would be the most in-character approach to their relationship, in light of recent chapters, so there’s some tweaks, but I think it’s a little closer to what I believe their canon relationship is like: namely, a bit more sassy and affectionate name-calling haha

Thorfinn had been awake for a few hours after Gudrid had drifted off. He could hear both her and Karli’s breaths as they slept, and it brought some comfort to his restlessness. 

He sighed, knowing he should try to sleep, but the beasts brought on through dreams were a rather large deterrent oftentimes. So he simply turned to the side, watching through the dim light as his family slept. 

Karli was often all over the place, never staying where he first fell asleep. His legs now hung over the side of the bed, his arms splayed across Gudrid’s torso. Gudrid was usually pretty stationary in her sleep, more so now than when they’d first wed. She used to roll about and take up a lot of space, but now she stayed wedged where she was between himself and Karli. He did feel bad about that, that she needed to serve as a barrier between him and their little one, so that his thrashing never affected the boy… but that meant she had to deal with it instead. But she wouldn’t let him sleep elsewhere, so there really wasn’t much more they could do. 

Still, he felt that guilt in him. As she slept, he could still see the bags under her eyes, evidence of how much less sleep she often got now, versus before they’d gotten married. He sighed again, reaching out to gently brush her bangs from her eyes. 

_ At least she can sleep peacefully right now,  _ he thought, letting out a breath. He traced his fingers down her soft cheek, gently caressing her face. He smiled lightly before pulling his hand back. 

It was a bit awkward and chaotic, being married to such a crazy woman as Gudrid, but he was happy to be her husband— and he wouldn’t change a thing, he was sure. She was good and kind, and thoughtful when she wanted to be. The affection she gave to him was often poorly timed and embarrassingly public, but he was grateful to feel such love from her. He knew that she was a blessing he surely didn’t deserve, but he was grateful for her nonetheless.

As he watched her, thinking such fond thoughts for her, her face began to twist into a tired frown. She breathed in a light gasp, her hands gripping the blankets. Thorfinn blinked, staring at her as she moaned a bit, turning her head to the side as if she was trying to hide. 

_ A nightmare? _

He’d never seen her have a nightmare before, not in all the time they’d shared a bed, and before dwelling in Leif’s ship in such close quarters. He wasn’t sure if he’d ever seen anyone else go through such a thing, other than experiencing it himself. Gudrid gasped, whimpering in her sleep as she trembled. He felt frozen watching her, wondering what in the world could’ve caused her to experience such a thing. 

“Thorf- Thorfinn…!” She muttered, gasping as she cried out. He stilled, gaping at her. 

_ It’s about… me? _

“N- no, don’t- please don’t-!” She gripped tighter to the bedsheets, her face twisted with pain. 

“Don’t leave…! D- leave me...”

That one felt like the wind had been knocked from his lungs, and his eyes widened.  _ She’s dreaming I’d leave her? _

He’d had enough at this, and not wanting her to suffer in the dream any longer, he pulled her close, grasping her arms as he shook her awake. “Gudri? Gudri, wake up.”

Her hands grasped his shirt now, and she tucked her head against his chest, still muttering and trembling. “Love… love you… st- stay, Thorf-“

“Hey, I’m right here,” he said in a stern whisper, trying not to rouse Karli. “Wake up!”

After a few moments of shaking, she finally woke, looking up at him blearily. “Wha-?”

He laid his head back down, letting out a sigh. “You awake now?”

She blinked at him, then down where his hands still grasped her. “What’re you-?”

“You were having a nightmare,” he said, softening his hands on her, rubbing her arms softly. “I’ve never seen you like that before.”

She rubbed at her eyes, yawning. “Yeah, it doesn’t happen much. But usually I wouldn’t move about like you do.”

He thought of the words she was saying and felt his stomach sink. “D- do you remember anything?”

Gudrid sighed, lying on her back once more. “Yeah, I remember it.”

He came closer, sliding a hand over her stomach. “Will you tell me about it?”

She turned her head, looking at him with a small frown. “Was I talking?”

Thorfinn let out a breath, then nodded. 

“Aw dammit, what’d I say?”

Thorfinn frowned, feeling that pit in his stomach deepen. “You were… pleading with me not to leave you…”

“Geez…” she muttered, smacking a hand over her face. Her reaction didn’t comfort him whatsoever. 

“A- are you worried that I would?” He asked, his stomach uneasy. “To the point of giving yourself nightmares?”

“No no, that’s not it, Thorfinn. No,” she muttered, waving her hand around as she spoke. “That’s not it at all, don’t worry.”

“Then what is it?” 

Gudrid’s frown deepened, glowering up at the ceiling. “I dream that Hild kills you… and you let her.”

He froze, blinking at her. Gudrid wouldn’t even look at him, and he had no clue what to say.  _ It’s… Hild has the right to…  _ but the words didn’t come out, and the silence stretched on between them. Suddenly, her dream, the words she’d cried out to him made sense. 

_ Should Hild kill me… I would leave Gudrid a widow, and Karli fatherless…  _

There was nothing to be done about it, though. None of it was up to him— everything he was was in Hild’s hands. It would’ve been easier for these people to have never connected themselves to him…

“I- I’m sorry, Gudrid,” he muttered, not knowing what else to say. 

She didn’t respond, just continued to stare at the ceiling. Then after a moment, she gave a frustrated groan and threw herself into him, burying her face in his chest as she breathed him in. He placed his hand against her hair, feeling at a loss. 

“I hate this,” Gudrid said, her voice muffled. “Hate it so much.”

He sighed again, leaning his cheek against her. “I know… but there’s nothing I can really do to change it…”

“I  _ understand,” _ she said with a hard voice, her hands clasping his shirt. “But I hate it.”

“I know…” he shut his eyes, hugging her tighter. “I do too… but I have no right to complain.”

Gudrid let out a rough growl, pulling herself away from him as she sat up, hugging her knees as she hid her face. “If Hild kills you, I think I would try to kill her back.”

It took a moment for her words to sink in; for Thorfinn to fully comprehend what she’d said. When they did, his eyes widened and he sat up, grasping her shoulder. “W- what did you say?”

Gudrid glared at him, her eyes shining in the light of the embers, her voice little more than a whisper. “You heard me.”

He felt like the wind had been knocked from him once more. “Gudrid, you don’t know what that means.”

“Maybe not, and it's not like I’m making plans or anything,” she bristled, setting her chin on her knees. “I’m just saying if she wants to avenge her father by killing a father, then she’d better be ready for her own consequences. That’s how her law works, after all.”

He hated it. He hated imagining Gudrid like that, filled with that kind of rage and hatred, taking someone’s life. But the look in her eyes— there was that desperation he knew so well… he wasn’t even dead yet, and he still knew the grief and pain and loathing that would saturate her, as it had him so long ago as a boy, watching his father die before him. Would it be the same for Gudrid, watching her husband die?

“Please,” he muttered, biting his lip, reaching for her. “I don’t want you to…”

“It won’t matter much what you want once you let yourself be murdered…” she sighed, her shoulders slouching as if she were exhausted. She leaned against him heavily, and he wrapped his arms about her as if he could protect her from all of this. 

“Thorfinn,” she muttered quietly. “Wouldn’t you rather it be me over our kid? Wouldn’t you rather him not be filled with such hatred, as he’s old enough now to comprehend death, but not old enough to understand why?”

As he held her, ice ran through his veins, slowly replacing his warm blood within his body. That’s what her point was—-  _ ‘Would you rather Karli become you?’  _ An impossible question. A horrible thought.

“Stop it,” he murmured, gripping her tighter in his arms. “Just stop it.”

She leaned her head against his shoulder, feeling heavy in his arms. “Sorry… I went too far…”

He didn’t know. It was a harsh reality they lived under, and it was easy to go with the flow and forget the threat until Hild decided there needed to be a reminder. The truth was that he only ever thought of Hild’s feelings in those situations. Not of his own or of Gudrid’s, or Karli’s, or Einar’s, or his family, or anyone he’d grown close to. The constant threat was a strain on many more than he always remembered to say the least. 

Gently, he pulled Gudrid down with him back into the bedding, holding her close. “Perhaps, but it’s not your fault. Hild causes… quite a bit of tension. It’s… difficult to manage sometimes.”

Gudrid breathed deeply, smelling him again— calming herself down. “Sorry though, don’t wanna be more of a burden... but yeah, she does… make it hard sometimes…” she groaned, hugging him tight. “And I  _ like  _ Hild! I think she’s cool, and she’s got a lot of awesome talents, and I wanna be her friend, but then she pulls shit like today, and I just wanna scratch her eyes out!”

“Gudrid…”

“I  _ know!  _ I know, Thorfinn,” she relaxed, feeling limp again. “I’m just frustrated is all…”

He leaned back away from her, feeling that tension still, but the air felt easier around the two of them. He placed a hand on her face, brushing his thumb over her cheek. “You’re such a handful, sometimes.”

Gudrid snorted. “So’re you, what’s new?”

He sighed, then pressed his lips to her forehead. “Go to sleep, okay?”

Gudrid smiled at that, then batted her eyelashes at him. “Gimme a real kiss first.”

“Greedy,” he chuckled, but he still kissed her all the same. She sighed against him, pulling him close and he slid his lips over hers. He cupped her face, kissing her deeper.

After a few moments of this, he pulled away, leaning his forehead against hers as he stroked his thumbs over her temples. “Sleep.”

“After all that? You jerk…” she hummed suggestively, and he blushed. 

“Gudri…”

“Fine!” She smirked, poking his nose. “But I’m cuddling you all night now.”

He chuckled, rolling his eyes. “Whatever you want, weirdo.”

She smiled, but relaxed into him, wrapping her arms about him. He held her close, feeling a bit of relief from their conversation. It wasn’t much, but being able to hold her like this seemed to help when he felt such frustration or anxiety—  _ he _ didn’t need to sniff her to calm himself,  _ such a strange woman…  _ But he still gleaned comfort from her contact all the same. He hugged her tight, running his fingers gently through her hair. 

“Sorry for the trouble,” he muttered quietly. 

“I don’t mind,” she sighed. “That’s what marriage is like, right? Putting up with each other’s troubles.”

He slowed, glancing at her thoughtfully. 

“I suppose you’re right, love.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading! I’m so grateful to you all, giving these gudfinn fics some time and attention! Please leave a comment, it helps so much! Thank you thank you!


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